The present invention relates generally to instant messaging chat sessions, and specifically to a method for organizing the statements in a chat session by topics.
Instant messaging (IM) is a communication service that allows a user on one computer to send and receive text messages in real time with another user on a second computer connected to the first computer. The channel for this communication is often referred to metaphorically as a chat room, and the communication over the channel is referred to as chat. In some IM versions, two or more users engage in a chat outside the boundaries of a chat room and each user is able to view a chat transcript on one or more local computers. Each user has a list of contacts with whom they may want to chat. The IM service may alert the user when a contact, who is on the user's contact list, is also online. A chat may then be started, and once started, either the user or the contact can enter text that will appear on other user's displays.
In the workplace, IM chats often take place between people working on common projects. In engineering and computer design activities, it is common for one user to have ten or more multiple chats running simultaneously. Chats may describe simple information shared by two workers scheduling a meeting, or chats may contain complex discussions regarding proprietary information and critical decisions to keep a project moving forward. Chats may contain a high degree of historical data and proprietary knowledge that is useful not only to the participants but that may be useful to other workers within the organization who did not participate in the chat. Moreover, the knowledge and data captured in the chat transcript may be useful as historical data for future reference by the participants as well as others. Finally, in some areas, such as financial services, preservation of the chat transcript may be required by securities regulations.
IM chats are frequently directed to a plurality of different topics. For example, two coworkers may chat about a current project, a future project, and lunch plans all in the same chat. When a new coworker enters the chat room, the new coworker may not be interested in the current project or lunch, but rather be interested only in the future project. Currently, the new coworker must scroll through the entire chat transcript in order to review the statements concerning the new project. Scrolling through the entire chat transcript to review the statements associated with the new project is an inefficient use of the new coworker's time. It would be more efficient to create topics and classify the statements into the topics so that the new coworker only has to review the statements associated with the topics he is interested in. Creating topics for the statements in the chat transcript would assist all coworkers in following the shift from one topic to another topic. Unfortunately, current IM programs do not allow for the creation of topics for the statements within the chat transcript. Therefore, a need exists for a method for creating topics for the statements within the chat transcript.
The prior art has previously addressed the problem of creating topics for the statements within the chat transcript. For example, U.S. patent application Publication 2003/0212746 (the '746 application) to Fitzpatrick entitled “Threaded Text-Based Chat Collaboration” discloses a method for assigning topics to statements in a chat transcript. The '746 application invention requires each participant to assign a topic to each statement as the statements are submitted to the chat room. The participants may then scan through the chat transcript and review the statements with the topic that the participants are interested in.
There are at least two drawbacks to the method disclosed in the '746 application. First, the chat participants are required to identify the topic for each statement prior to submitting the statement. This creates an extra step for the chat participants. The extra step becomes burdensome when the chat focuses on a single topic for an extended period. The topical arrangement of statements would be less burdensome if the participants only had to indicate a topic when there is a topic shift. Moreover, the burden of assigning statements to the topics would be eliminated if the statements were automatically assigned to the topics. Consequently, a need exists for a method for grouping statements into topics in which the chat participants do not have to specify the topic for each statement submitted to the IM channel.
Second, using the '746 method, new chat participants are still required to read through the entire chat transcript in order to find the statements that the new chat participants are interested in. Chat participants would be able to quickly review the statements they are interested in if all of the statements pertaining to the topic that the participant is interested in were grouped together in a separate window on the chat GUI. The '746 application does not disclose a method for grouping together the statements for a single topic or displaying the grouped statements in a separate window. Consequently, a need exists for a method for grouping statements into topics in which the statements for each topic are displayed in separate windows on the chat GUI.